Chapter 15


	After yelling into the sky proved to be useless, Flint and Rex decided they had to do something more constructive.

	"Can't we just get a ride with Lily instead," suggested Rex.

	"That's why," replied Flint as he watched their plane take off.

	"Wait come back!" shouted Rex as he chased after the plane.

 	Flint turned to the other members of his team to see how they were doing.  "Are you guys alright?" he asked.

	"Just fine," replied Fonz.  "Except for our hearts being torn out we're just peachy."

	"But you're still waving goodbye to Angel and she's been long gone already," he commented.

	"Bye Angel, goodbye," said Dan and Jack as they waved.

	"After she chose Rex over us we feel like we want to kill him, but horrible disasters don't go straight to violence.  First there's denial, then bargaining, then sadness, then jealousy, and finally rage.  After that is acceptance and it's over.  For the time being, Rex should probably stick clear of those two."

	"What about you?" asked Flint.  "You're in denial too."

	"I'm too cool to be in denial," he replied, ignoring the fact he was still waving.

	"Whatever," said Flint.  "The fact remains we need to get off this island so we have to work together to do that.  Dan, you check for supplied around the beach.  Fonz and Jack, you check in the jungle for stuff.  I'm going to find Rex and look with him.  We'll meet back up at the starting point for the race in a couple of hours with whatever we can use to work with."


	The time passed by quickly and when the team regrouped they found each one had gone through a few changes.  "What happened to you?" was the first thing everyone blurted out.

	"On my way to find Rex I found this old straw hat," explained Flint.  "Since we'll probably have to make a raft to get back to the mainland I figured it would keep my head cool with the sun blaring down on us."

	"I wanted to find something too," added Rex.  "I hopped all over the place, but I couldn't find anything cool."

	"What about that that earring?" asked Fonz.

	"What earring?" asked Rex.

	"The thing on your ear," stated Fonz.

	"What?" he asked as he turned his head to both sides to look, but couldn't see anything.

	"He probably got it caught on his ear while he was jumping around," suggested Flint.  "He already had it when I found him."

	"You guys are messing with me aren't you," he replied.

	"Uh, anyway, I was thinking the same thing as you with the head gear," explained Fonz.  "So I made my afro poof into one."

	"Why did you make it into a pirate hat?" asked Rex.  He paused for a moment as he stared at it.  "With a smiley face skull?"

	"What can I say?" replied Fonz.  "My hair has a mind of its own.  You guys know what it's like."  He looked at his friends and quickly realized they were all hairless.  "Oh, well never mind."

	"Well," said Flint trying to hold back his laughter.  "What happened to you, Jack?"

	"Nothing," he lied, though with the eye patch across his left eye and the bucket on his right foot that was obvious.

	"He got the bucket stuck on his food while he was traipsing through the forests," explained Fonz.  "He tried to get it off and ended up falling right into a tree and got a black eye."

	"You're joking right?" asked Flint.

	"Just drop it," groaned Jack.  He turned to Dan in hopes of changing the conversation.  "What's with the volleyball?"

	"What volleyball?" Dan asked.  They all pointed at the ball he had with him.  It was just an ordinary volleyball, but it had a face drawn on it and a couple tears on the top that made it look like ears.  "Don't you guys see, its Angel?  She's back."

	"Angel," cried Jack and Fonz as they huddled around to admire the inanimate object.  Flint and Rex stared.

	"You guys can't be serious," Rex said.

	"Denial," replied Fonz.

	With the supplied gathered Team Matrix set to work crafting a raft.  They originally expected their combined efforts to make the task easy, but they soon had to admit it was a lot more arduous.  Securely trying logs together was tough enough, but with the number of Digimon they had support meant they had to make it quite large as well.  Their craftsmanship was very flimsy at first and fell apart the moment they put it in the water.  Several attempts later they managed to get it to stay together until they actually boarded it.  It split apart and plunged them into the salty water.  After a few more attempts and a couple more trips into the wooded areas to resupply they managed to make something sturdy enough to carry them all.

	To help with their travels they took some thick branches to use as paddles and fixed the flag of Angel as a sail.  Flint's Digipad gave them all the info they needed to know which way they had to travel and which way they were going.  Once they were satisfied that it wouldn't give out on them all of a sudden they gathered as much food as they thought they would need for the trip.  As the others sat in the raft Dan pushed the raft into deeper water till he couldn't keep his neck above water and cautiously climbed aboard.  After that, they were able to set sail in the water and watch as the island shrank into the background.

	"We're finally out to sea!" exclaimed Flint as he breathed in the salty air.  He started turning a pale green color and slumped to the ground.  "Ugh, are we home yet?"

	"What's wrong?" asked Rex.  "Seasick?"

	"How should I know," moaned Flint.  "This is my first time in a boat.  Dan, do we have any medicine to make me feel better?"

	"Uh, I don't think he's listening to you," replied Rex watching as Dan stared at him with a dopey smile.  In fact, Jack and Fonz were doing the same.  "Can I help you?"

	"Well, we were thinking," began Dan.

	"Angel likes you and you like us," added Jack.

	"Would you put in a good word for us with her?" finished Fonz.

	"What?" asked Rex confused.

	"I think they're onto bargaining," commented Flint.  "You might as well humor them since we don't really have anything else to do for a while."  He managed to get those words out before the sickening feeling in his stomach kicked in again.

	"Humor them, huh," stated Rex.  He then looked from them to the volley ball and back and forth several more times.  "I'm supposed to talk to a stupid ball?"

	"Just humor them," groaned Flint.  "If it will help them get over it then all the better."

	"Fine," sighed Rex and walked over to the volleyball.  He tried to figure out something to say, but he just muttered inconsistently and the more he thought about what he was doing the more awkward it felt.  He looked in the corner of his eye to see the others looking at him with hope in their eyes.  As he returned to speak with the volleyball a strong wave hit the raft and caught him off balance.  He fell onto the raft, but thankfully their efforts in making it sturdy prevented any damage.  However, his fall knocked the volleyball into the water terrifying Fonz, Jack, and Dan.  Without a second thought they dove in after it.  They struggled fiercely against the waves and each other to be the one to save her.

	"Well that's a bit disturbing," commented Rex.

	"And only going to make this journey more difficult," added Flint groaning from his seasickness.  "They're wasting energy and we're going to need all the strength we can muster because I think there's a storm."

	"A storm?" asked Rex looking out to sea.  "I see some clouds, but even if it's a storm it has to be miles away.  You're just too sick to think straight."

	"Hey Rex, when did your twin brother get here?" asked Flint as he turned to him.  "Oh, and your sister's here too.  You know in all the time I've known you I've never met them and now they show up out of the blue and in the middle of the ocean."

	"I don't have any siblings," answered Rex realizing that Flint was getting worse and so was the severity of their situation.  He got relief when Dan and the others climbed back on the raft.  "Alright, that's enough messing around guys.  We have a lot of work to do so no messing around."

	"Ok," whimpered Dan as he looked around for an oar.

	"What's wrong," asked Rex.

	"It wasn't our fault alright," barked Jack trying to hide his tears.  "So stop with the third degree."

	"Uh, the what?" asked Rex even more confused.

	"We did our best," answered Fonz.  "But when we got to her it was already too late."  He held out the volleyball for Rex to see.  It didn't look any more worse for wear before it fell into the water save for it being wet, but then he also noticed the ink had washed off.  As the three looked at their beloved they shed new tears.  "Angel is dead!"

	"Oh, come on!" shouted Rex in disbelief.  He watched as they gave the volleyball a proper burial at sea.  He watched as they each said something.

	"I didn't know Angel long," wept Jack.  "But in the time I knew her I calculated she was worth a lot financially and as a beautiful creature.  And now I'll not get to enjoy either."

	Fonz went next and decided to sing in a surprisingly beautiful and out of character voice.  "The candle burned out long before, the legend ever did," he sang.

	"Oh, Angel!  Why?!?" cried Dan unable to say anything else.  "Oh, why Angel?!?  Why?  Angel!"

	"I really can't wait for them to get through this," murmured Rex as he had to lend them a shoulder to cry on.  He looked out to sea and spotted something in the distance.  "Is that?  It is!  A ship!"  Excitedly, Rex kicked the volleyball into the distance and grabbed an oar as he started rowing towards it.  Dan, Fonz, and Jack moped sadly as they watched the volleyball vanish into the deep sea, but they eventually joined in too.  As they reached the ship they tied up their raft alongside it and called up to the deck.

	"Is anyone there?" called Rex.  "We were wondering if we could get some help getting back to the mainland."  Nobody answered.  Rex gave a few more attempts before they climbed aboard.  What they found was nothing like they expected.  The ship was run down and decrepit.  Bones were scattered about, apparently of the owners.  The only way they could even consider the ship to still be sailing was if it haunted.

	"I didn't expect this," stated Rex.  "But at least we got something better than a raft now."

	"Ok," Flint said wearily getting to his feet. "Dan you take the wheel and I'll help you navigate.  Rex and Jack check to see if there are any supplies on the ship.  Fonz, you go to the crow's nest to act as our lookout."

	"Maybe we should see about finding you some medicine," suggested Rex.  "And some more rest could help right guys."

	"Maybe," replied Dan facing away from Rex.  Fonz and Jack were doing it too.

	"Are you guys ok?" asked Rex.

	"Don't you know?" replied Fonz coldly.  "You know everything don't you.  I mean you are Mr. Perfect.  Why else would Angel like you so much?"

	"Oh, jealousy stage," groaned Rex.  "I can already tell this is going to be annoying."

	"Why should we be jealous?" asked Jack sarcastically.  "Just because you have the love of our life, millions of dollars, six pack abs, and laser vision."

	"I don't have any of those things," argued Rex.

	"Ahoy and prepare to be boarded!" shouted a voice none of them recognized from the opposite side of the ship they docked their raft on.  The owner of the voice quickly jumped onto the deck revealing to be a Starmon.  He had on a pair of sunglasses and a cowboy hat.  Behind him was a trio of Gekomon who wore star shaped costumes that resembled Starmon.

	"Uh, who are you?" asked Rex.

	"It seems my reputation precedes me?" the Starmon said misunderstanding what Rex said. "Yes I'm Hiryuu, the Flying Dragon.  I am the leader of Team Stars and we're the famous team that everyone talks about."  As he continued to talk, he struck different theatrical poses.  "We make the stars of the heavens look dull and dim.  We are the adventures that are not afraid to climb any mountain or cross any sea.  And there are not any opponents who can defy us."  As he finished he struck one final pose and his Gekomon companions shined spotlights on him for dramatic effect.

	"Never heard of you," repeated Rex.

	"Well heard of us or not, you have now," replied Hiryuu.  "I'm sure you'd like to join my team, but sadly I'm not taking new members at the moment.  Please try not to be jealous."  He looked at the ailing Flint.  "I see this one is already green with envy."

	"Uh, boss, I think he's seasick," replied the Gekomon in unison.

	"You're right," Hiryuu agreed.  "Do, Re, Mi, orange me."

	"Yes sir," they said as they quickly jumped back to their boat and returned with an orange they handed to him.

	He then proceeded to shove the citrus into Flint's maw almost causing him to choke on it.  "You have to be careful on these waters," he explained not paying attention to Flint's flailing to dislodge the orange.  If you don't have plenty of vitamin C you'll get sick.  It looks like you're already feeling a bit better.  Say, what are you guys doing here anyway?"

	"We're another guild," Rex began to say as he helped Flint get the orange out of his mouth so he could peel it and eat it normally.

	"Another guild," repeated Hiryuu.  "And what are you doing here?  This is our mission location.  You aren't stealing our treasure now, are you?"

	"We wouldn't do that," explained Rex.  "Right guys."

	"Steal?" stated Dan.  "You stole the love of our lives so why not his treasure."

	"That's not helping," cried Rex.

	"He steels from everyone," added Jack.  "There's no honor among thieves after all."

	"You have no right to talk," complained Rex.

	"And he stole my hair," stated Fonz.  Everyone paused to look at the large hairdo he was currently wearing.  "I got it back."

	"Well I don't look too kindly on those who take what doesn't belong to them, stated Hiryuu. "I don't even care if you did the work of clearing out the Fragments."

	"What Fragments?" asked Rex.  "There was nobody on board when we got here?"

	"Impossible," stated Hiryuu.  "The Intel I received clearly stated there were Fragments guarding it."

	"I think he's right," answered Flint sounding a lot better.

	"That orange seems to be working," stated Rex happily.

	"I know, but we've got a bit of a problem.  Where did all those bones go?  They were everywhere and now I don't see any."

	"You're right," stated Hiryuu.  "They must've done so while this turkey was distracting me."

	"I'm not a turkey," complained Rex.

	"Well looks like we're going to have a bit of a brawl on our hands," said Hiryuu.  "I'm the only one who really does the fighting on my team and there might be one or two more enemies than I could handle by myself."

	"Well my team is full of fighters," replied Flint.  "But I'm feeling a lot better that I could handle this myself."

	"Rex!" roared Dan, Jack, and Fonz their eyes full of bloodlust.  "We're going to get you!"

	Rex cowered a bit as they approached his like a pack of lions prepared to pounce on their prey.  "They reached rage!" he cried in terror.  "And they're out for blood and it's mine!"  He ran off in a fright and made his way below deck.  They chases after him in a crazed pursuit.

	"What's with your team?" asked Hiryuu.  "They're strange."

	"Girl trouble," answered Flint.  "Hopefully they'll snap out of it soon."

	"Well, that just leaves us to deal with the Fragments," said Hiryuu.  "And by the looks of things we're surrounded."

	Indeed they were.  Most of their opponents were still out of sight, but they could see a few sticking out of their hiding places.  Do, Re, and Mi hid behind Flint and Hiryuu too afraid to go anywhere else with so many enemies lying in wait.  Then suddenly, without provocation they attacked, a skeleton crew of seemingly endless numbers charged forward to swarm them.

	As Flint and Hiryuu readied themselves the Fragments repeatedly muttered, "Argh!"